The current state of the art of irregular tire tread wear evaluation is substantially subjective. Those persons involved in evaluating irregular tire tread wear must see, and frequently touch, the actual tire under consideration in order to formulate a conclusion as to the causes of such irregular tire tread wear. Such techniques have rendered it virtually impossible to archive or otherwise maintain the data respecting the tires considered, for such data has, in large part, been nothing more than the mental process undertaken by the individual evaluating the tire. In the past, data respecting such tread wear has been stored by actual retention of the tire itself or, at least, portions thereof.
Additionally, the prior art techniques for evaluating irregular tire tread wear have made it extremely difficult to make accurate comparisons of tread wear from one tire to another, particularly when the differences in tread wear between the tires are extremely small. Additionally, there is a lack of both accuracy and consistency in unaided human perceptions as to the subjectivity of irregular tire wear evaluation.
The prior art is also substantially devoid of techniques for detecting anomalies in tire sidewalls. In the manufacture of pneumatic tires, the nature of splices and mating elements in the tire sidewall are of particular interest for structural integrity and appearance. Of similar interest are the presence of bulges, cord shrinkage, and the like.
There is a need in the art for a method and apparatus for measuring irregular tread wear which is capable of high resolution, accuracy, and repeatability. A need further exists for such a method and apparatus which is structurally compact and easily transported, simplistic in operation, and rapid in effecting the requisite data acquisition and analysis. Finally, a need exists for a simplistic method and apparatus for detecting anomalies in tire sidewalls.